South Korea ferry: Hundreds missing as ship sinks off coast

Four confirmed dead as officials say those inside wreck unlikely to have
survived, amid suggestions passengers - including 325 school pupils - were
told to stay below deck as ship sank

By Hannah Strange, and agencies

3:45PM BST 16 Apr 2014

More than 300 passengers missing after ferry Sewol sinks on way to Jeju island325 students on school trip among 459 people onboardCause of sinking unknown but one witness spoke of a loud noise on impactNumber of missing revised sharply upwards after earlier miscalculation by officialsFears many trapped inside as survivors say announcement told them to stay in positions below deckOfficials say hypothermia can set in after 90 minutes in waters of 12 degrees CelsiusUS Navy dispatches ship as officials say mud on seabed complicating hours-long rescue efforts

Naval divers were on Wednesday searching the wreck of a ferry which sank off South Korea with hundreds of school pupils on board, as fears deepened that many of the almost 300 missing passengers may have perished after being trapped inside the sinking vessel.

After hours of intense rescue efforts, hopes of finding survivors were fading as night fell over the cold waters off the country's southern coast, leaving hundreds of emergency workers to scour the area under floodlights.

"I'm afraid there's little chance for those trapped inside still to be alive," one senior rescue team official, Cho Yang-Bok, told YTN television.

Parents of the pupils - most thought to be 16 and 17 years old - wept as they gathered at the school in Ansan city near Seoul desperate for news of their children. There were suggestions from survivors that the ferry operator had instructed passengers to stay in their positions as the ship sank, destroying any chance of escape.

Four were confirmed dead and what initially appeared to be an impressive rescue effort threatened to become a major maritime disaster as an early tally of 100 missing tripled after a revision by South Korean officials. The US Navy said it was dispatching the amphibious assault ship USS Bonhomme Richard, which has helicopters on board, to join the operation, as authorities said that mud on the ocean floor was complicating the underwater search.

Almost 100 ships and 18 helicopters were deployed after the ferry carrying 459 people, including many high school students, began sinking at around 9am (1am UK) as it sailed to the southern island of Jeju.

Coast guard members search for passengers

There was confusion over the figures involved as officials at first said 368 had been rescued, leaving 107 unaccounted for, but the South Korean government later reported that only 164 people had been pulled from the water. Amid frustration among the passengers' families, the number of people on board was also revised, some apparently having been double-counted.

The earlier, more optimistic reports were put down to a miscalculation by officials.

South Korean rescue helicopters fly over the sinking South Korean passenger ship

Kang Byung-kyu, a government minister, said two of the dead were a female crew member and a male high school student. He said a third body was also believed to be that of a student. A fourth fatality was confirmed by a coastguard officer but there were no immediate details as to the victim's identity. A further 55 people were reported injured.

Survivors said they had been told by the ferry operator to stay in their seats before the vessel tilted sharply to one side, triggering panic.

Kim Seong-mok, speaking from a nearby island after his rescue, told YTN that he was "certain" that many people were trapped inside the ferry as water quickly rushed in and the severe tilt of the vessel kept them from reaching the exits. Some people urged those who couldn't get out of the ferry to break windows.

Rescued passengers are escorted by members of a rescue team upon their arrival at a port in Jindo (AP)

Mr Kim said that after having breakfast he felt the ferry tilt and then heard it crash into something. He said the ferry operator made an announcement asking that passengers wait and not move from their places.

"The crew kept telling us not to move," another male pupil said.

"Then it suddenly shifted over and people slid to one side and it became very difficult to get out," he added.

"A lot of people must have been trapped," one official at the scene said.

One student, Lim Hyung-min, told broadcaster YTN after being rescued that he and other students jumped into the ocean wearing life jackets and then swam to a nearby rescue boat.

"As the ferry was shaking and tilting, we all tripped and bumped into each another," Lim said, adding that some people were bleeding. Once he jumped, the ocean "was so cold. ... I was hurrying, thinking that I wanted to live."

The water temperature in the area was said to be around 12 degrees Celsius, cold enough to cause the onset of hypothermia after about 90 minutes to two hours.

Some 325 students were on their way for a four-day school trip on Jeju island when the ferry Sewol sent a distress call Wednesday morning after it began leaning to one side, according to Ministry of Security and Public Administration.

South Korean passenger ship Sewol sinks off the coast of South Korea (Reuters)

Local media photographs showed the ship heavily tilted onto its side, partially submerged, then sinking further into the waters circled by rescue boats and helicopters buzzing overhead. Finally, even the blue and white bow disappeared.

There was no immediate indication of what caused the ship to list and roll on its side, although one witness told YTN television there had been a "loud impact and noise" before it started sinking. Heavy fog had set in overnight off the west coast, leading to the cancellation of many ferry services.

Passengers are rescued by the Coast Guard from the sinking ferry (Getty Images)